Zille

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Zille

In 2007 Mayor of Cape Town, Helen Zille, joined forces with concerned community members to take a stand against the growing problem of drug abuse, in particular against crystal methamphetamine locally known as tik. Community members across Cape Town were witnessing their family and friends fall victim to the drug at an alarming rate and the freedom with which dealers operated made one question if it was actually illegal at all. The effects were being felt on the community. Large sums of disposable income were being spent to sustain the addiction, and when that ran out the addicts turned to crime. The mental destruction the drug does left the users comatose all day long after a night of tikking which led to drop outs and expulsions from schools and work places. It also numbed the intelligence of the users and sent them into complete denial of their addiction, leading them into a life of lies.

Everyone knew who the dealers were, as they were easy to spot – always the biggest houses with the steel door locking them in – but no one was doing anything to stop these activities. Zille stepped in and organised a series of legal marches in which herself and community members marched down the streets going door to door in search of drug dealers and demanding they stop their activities.

This reached a climax on 9 September 2007 in Mitchells Plein when police refused to let the Mayor knock on the door of a drug dealer to deliver a letter of warning. One could not help but raise suspicion over why the police seemed to be protecting this dealer to such a degree. With nothing being illegal about knocking on a door Zille proceeded to do what she had done so many times before and the police responded by arresting a bystander, Armien Maker. The marchers proceeded to the police station and when the refused to go home without Maker’s release they started arresting people including women and children. One woman was allegedly beaten until she wet herself in the station. Zille fought the police’s unjust actions until she to was arrested. She was released later that night.

The drug war continues and so did the Mayors marches, now driven more than ever. This is a portrayal of events leading up to her arrest, her court case (which was postponed), the marches that followed, and her interaction with Cape Town communities to make them better places.